Curious about Water Births

gin78

Has anyone done this?   I did a search and nothing came up.  What was your experience?  I'm obviously not far along but considering all of my options.  Thanks!

lrhagy

I haven't done this so I am not able to speak from personal knowledge.  However, I did watch a short video on babycenter.com about water births, and the mother looked extremely relaxed and peaceful.  If you haven't already viewed this video I would check it out.  Obviously no two experiences are the same but it was definitely persuasive.

gin78

Thanks for the tip!  I have yet to talk to my doc about it.  I have an appointment in a few weeks so maybe I'll bring it up then.  Relaxation is key! 

kimisuejoia

https://www.waterbirth.org/mc/page.do?sitePageId=38425&orgId=wi

 

Dukos

I haven't had a baby yet, so I can't speak from experience, but one of my good friends went the waterbirth route with all three of her kids.  She swears by it and has nothing but wonderful things to say about the experience.

suzymarie

I had a waterbirth in a hospital with a CNM.  It was great.

 

I had an extremely fast and hard labor- my water broke, and I immediately had 2 minute apart contrax.  We left for the Hosp. right away, and I was basically in transition when we got there.

 

When I got there my midwife was already there and they were filling the tub for me.  They did one monitoring strip on the baby to get a baseline and then I got in the tub.  If I was having a slower labor I would have had to wait til 5cm to get in the tub.

 

Labor was still very painful in the tub for me, but being in the water helped so mcuh.  I was able to move around more easily since I was sort of weightless, and relax between contrax.  I gave birth in the water and DS and I relaxed in the tub for about 20 min, then we cut the cord and I got out and got on a bed to be stitched (I had a small tear- I think it was my fault for pushing too fast- I wanted him out!).  DH held DS while I got stitched, then handed him to me and we tried to nurse for the first time.

 

I am planning to have another waterbirth with #2.

Blackvelvet

I found a lot of information on websites and really want a water birth but with my insurance and location I really can't afford it.  The best my midwife can do is let me be in the water untill it's time to puch then I have to get out.  At least I can labor in the tub.

ccrow

i havent personally had one but from seeing a few on tv and reading up on them. some say it can be easier to push the baby out and eases the pains of labor some. since water naturally makes you lighter and can ease some pressure. also i have read lots of women dont end up tearing, that the water helps ease the baby out easier.

Sawyerplus1

I had a water birth with my first and plan to again this time around. It was great. The water felt heavenly and gave me the freedom to move around as I needed. It didn't alleviate all the pain, of course, but helped a great deal. The only hitch was that I was in the tub for about 8 hours. When I got in my water hadn't broken and it stayed intact for the next 7 hours (yes, I stalled at 8 cms for 7 hours!!). Anyway, it was a bit long to be in the tub but was still super. It's amazing how many people ask me if the water got cold being it in so long! They turned the hot water back on , people! (Sorry, a little pet peeve of mine there.)